Covid-19 has already brought on enough stress and tension about your health. Add to that having to worry about cancer and you have an anxiety cocktail for yourself.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, due to various reasons many cancer patients have not gone for their regular follow-ups or have missed their active treatment schedule leading to a situation where the cancer has progress or recurred. Furthermore many patients with symptoms suggestive of cancer did not present for evaluation early leading to cancer being diagnosed at an advanced stage.
Lifestyle habits and choices are now proven to be risk factors for cancer. Lifestyle modifications help in preventing cancer during a pandemic or otherwise. Let’s understand the five lifestyle changes that will help reduce your risk of cancer amid Covid-19.
1. HEALTHY EATING
Your diet plays an important role in maintaining your health. Opting for healthier choices while buying groceries and eating nutritious foods can help reduce your risk. Try to include whole grains, beans, lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and other plant-based foods in your diet. Minimise usage of refined sugars, refined carbs, and fat from animal sources especially as red meat and processed meat has been classified as Carcinogenic by the World Health Organisation. People who eat the Mediterranean diet have a lowered risk of developing cancer. Include mixed nuts, legumes, and healthy fats like olive oil, avocadoes, and fish. It is also important to be conscious of calories as Covid-19 has made everyone to stay plonked at home while munching on a lot of junk food. Cut down on your online food ordering and untimely snacking. Focus on portion control and eating on time while working from home.
2. IDEAL BODY WEIGHT
Maintaining a healthy body weight helps you stay healthy. Obesity is recognised as a risk factor for many cancers such as esophagus, stomach, colon, breast, uterus, ovary, and pancreatic cancers. Losing up to 5-10% of your body weight helps regulate your blood sugar levels as well. Try to include any one form of physical activity in your daily routine. Physical activity helps control your weight and boosts your mood. Try to include a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity each week. If you are not able to stick to these goals, then aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity daily. You could try walking, jogging, skipping, swimming or cycling. Join a zumba class or a pilates class online to get that extra stamina and flexibility.
3. TOBACCO
Avoid using tobacco in all forms. Everyone knows smoking leads to cancer. You may develop cancer of the lungs, mouth, throat, pancreas, bladder, larynx, cervix, and kidney. Stop smoking and stop chewing on tobacco to reduce your risk of cancer. Secondhand smoke exposure can also put you at risk for developing cancer. Seek help to quit tobacco easily. With the stress from the pandemic, many people have started smoking which can increase your risk of developing cancer.
4. HAVE ADEQUATE SLEEP
Work from home has also resulted in prolonged and irregular working hours late into the night which can cause a disruption of the body’s biological clock called as circadian rhythm which along with a decrease in the production of a neurohormone called melatonin may increase the risk of cancer. It has also been hypothesized that poor sleep can also lead to an impairment in the immune system of the body. Infact the International Agency for Cancer Research (IARC) has classified Night shift work as a probable carcinogen.
Hence it is important to get adequate sleep of atleast 7-8 hours duration. Usage of electronic goods particular mobile phones before bedtime leads to poor quality and duration of sleep and also interferes with the circadian rhythm. Hence, try to stop usage of mobile phones or electronic devices atleast 30 minutes-1 hour before bedtime
5. REGULAR MEDICAL CHECKS
Covid-19 has put a halt on most of your doctor visits. But it is essential to keep track of your health and review via atleast a teleconsultation with your doctor especially if you have comorbidities such as diabetes and hypertension or a past history of cancer to ensure that all the parameters are under control. If one is a cancer patient on active treatment, do not take a decision to stop treatment on your own. Consult with your treating oncologist and understand whether any changes are to be made to the current treatment regimen with regard to frequency , duration , medicines based on guidelines which exist on management of cancers during the pandemic. If you have already received cancer treatment in the past, be in touch with your oncologist on the appropriate time to schedule follow up scans and blood tests.
Do not ignore symptoms such as a lump in the breast, loss of weight, lymph node swellings in the neck, axilla or groin region, an ulcer that does not heal, an usual mole on the skin, changes in bowel or bladder habits or persistent cough/hoarseness of voice. It is pertinent to seek medical attention for these symptoms for a detailed evaluation to rule out cancer by visiting a doctor.
There are various screening tests such as mammogram for breast cancer, pap smear for cervical cancer, colonoscopy for colon cancer which have been proven to detect cancer at an early stage. Cancer screening has declined ever since the pandemic hit in 2020. At cancer care centres where there was 70% occupancy for cancer screening, now only have about 25% of the cases coming in for cancer screening. Detection of cancer at an early stage helps in tremendously increased chances of cure and better survival
So, continue to be careful, follow all protocols with regard to Covid-19 as issued by the health authorities, ensure you and your family members have been vaccinated, maintain a healthy lifestyle and ensure you keep track of your health with necessary and timely health checks and screening.
The writer is Consultant in Medical Oncology and Hemato-Oncology, Manipal Comprehensive Cancer Care Center, Sarjapur Bengaluru.